For Mike Ryan, the Cayman Islands developer behind landmark projects across the region, sailing has always moved in parallel with building. In a new video, he opens up about Tenaz, his 130-foot Cayman Islands yacht, and the thinking behind a boat built to take his family across the world’s oceans.
From Idea to Reality
Michael Ryan has been sailing for over four decades. He and his ex-wife lived aboard a boat early in their marriage, long before Tenaz was ever a plan on paper. That history is what made the search so specific.
“We chartered a lot, and we narrowed it down to the key things Tenaz has that nobody else did.”
Dozens of boats, months of comparison, and one clear standard: real outdoor living space, enough staterooms to fit the whole family, and a Pendennis sailing yacht built to actually cross oceans, not just look good at the dock.
A Deck Meant to Be Lived ON
Start with the cockpit, and the priorities become obvious. Tenaz has three distinct zones on deck: a dining area, a wide U-shaped lounge, and a full aft deck, all under a canopy that opens or closes with the weather.
“You come on a sailboat because you want to be outside.
That same instinct runs through the interior. The signature Ed Dubois yacht design wraps oversized windows around the hull, so light reaches all the way from the salon to the galley below.
A Layout Built for Family Sailing Around the Worl
With four staterooms and seven ensuite cabins, the Tenaz superyacht was designed so guests, family, and crew all have room to themselves, something Mike Ryan says matters most on long passages.
“Everybody at some point wants to have their own space.
The superyacht master stateroom carries that idea further. A minor modification turned part of it into a fully functional office, complete with three separate communication systems, allowing Michael Ryan to stay connected wherever the boat happened to be, even mid-ocean.
Ready for the Long Haul
A proper stand-up engine room, ample storage, and space for spare parts and repairs were treated as essentials, not afterthoughts, on this long-range sailing yacht. Mike Ryan recalls the value of that setup while anchored in Indonesia’s Raja Ampat, far from any port.
“If there was a problem with something, we could fix it; we could keep going.”
The same practicality shows up in the galley, built for function over spectacle so the crew preparing meals can actually move.
Where Life Happens: The Aft Deck
If the cockpit is Tenaz’s social hub, the luxury yacht’s aft deck is its most-used feature. The transom folds down into an open platform for swimming, fishing, and welcoming guests aboard, a detail Mike Ryan says the family used constantly.
“The kids would get in the water, they would play and do flips.”
For a developer whose day-to-day work centers on hospitality and residential projects through Silverfin Development Company, Tenaz reflects the same instinct applied to family life at sea: build spaces around how people actually live in them, not around how they look on paper.
Watch the full conversation above, and learn more about Michael Ryan’s work as a Cayman Islands developer, including past features like the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit and his conversation with Hall of Fame golfer and course designer Greg Norman.
